


Stories of the Second Self: Coming Out

by John_Steiner



Series: Alter Idem [95]
Category: Urban Fantasy - Fandom, school shooting - Fandom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:07:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22608253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/John_Steiner/pseuds/John_Steiner
Summary: In the aftermath of the Norwood High mass shooting, the school, and the world, still had yet to accept the new reality. Miranda Imura joins her history teacher and other students, all of whom are supernaturals, in using a school assembly to reveal their real selves to the student body and staff.
Series: Alter Idem [95]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1618813





	Stories of the Second Self: Coming Out

Students had been given a week off after the shooting and bombing of the school. Counseling for students who needed it was ongoing. The following Monday an assembly had been scheduled to address the new reality; werewolves were real, and other supernaturals were part of Norwood, of Cincinnati, the state of Ohio, America, and indeed the world.

Antsy about her own announcement, Miranda was pulled out of her thoughts by Mr. Donald, her history teacher.

"You still want to go through with this?" Mr. Donald asked.

Rapidly, Miranda nodded her head, and took a deep breath before she lost her courage. Mr. Donald was a Fae as well, and just like Miranda, was using illusion spells to keep that fact a secret.

"Alright, but we need to go around the back and you need to do something for me first," Mr. Donald said, and patted her shoulder.

Following Mr. Donald, Miranda walked around the mass of students heading into the auditorium main doors. They went into the side doors used by the drama club or band and choir members, of which Miranda was involved in the latter two. She knew the corridor well enough to navigate it in the dark, buy why the lights were out unnerved her.

"Okay, guys," Mr. Donald called out to the darkness. "You ready?"

A couple clicks were the answer, and with the lights Miranda saw almost every supernatural in the school standing before her. Lila, the Luc Fae with single-point two inch long antlers approached her. Miranda reached out for the mutual hug.

"Thank you for helping me," Lila whispered and, on pulling back, had tears in her eyes.

Miranda had been showing Lila spells and helping her perfect her innate illusion talent, just as Mr. Donald had taught Miranda. Lila's current illusion omitted her wide nose bridge, pointed ears, antlers, and cloven hooves. Yet, being a Fae, Miranda could see right through it.

At the back of the crowd, Miranda saw Gillian, who now stood a little over nine feet tall and waved at Miranda. Off to one side, stood someone else who made Miranda brighten up even more.

"Mark?" Miranda called out with joy.

She hadn't realized he was allowed back, let alone allowed out after his turned into his lupine form to deal with the men who attacked the school.

"We're all here for you," Mark replied and looked to Julian, her boyfriend before adding, "We're going to announce together. No one else knows yet."

"Okay, everyone," Mr. Donald announced after a mic test carried through the wall. "It's time."

Everyone gave Gillian enough room to get onto her hands and knees to go through the door, and then followed after her. There were a couple other kids on their way to becoming giants, but Gillian was easily the tallest.

Forming two lines, one at each side of the stage, the kids all waited along with a few other teachers that Miranda now saw had their own admission to make before the school. The stage curtains were still closed, and Miranda turned at hearing someone's dress shoes step to the center of the stage in front of the curtains.

"Principal Miller," Mr. Donald said, "He doesn't know yet."

"Okay, Ushers?" Principal Miller's voice carried over the auditorium speakers. "Let's get everyone seated please, and we can begin."

After a couple minutes, ambling and restless students quieted down, and Principal Miller began. "Okay, it's been a rough time for us at Norwood High. Our sense of safety and normal was shattered, and a lot of us lost good friends. We're gathered here today, not only to remember them, but also to hopefully come to terms with just how different things are going to be for everybody. As you may have heard, one of our students, Mark Lowell revealed himself to be rather different from most of us. I don't just mean that he-- what he accepts to be called, a werewolf, but that he showed remarkable character in stepping up when he sensed the need was dire."

Miranda caught a glimpse of Mrs. Draper, the biology teacher and a werewolf herself, chuckling at the principal's choices of words. It took a minute for Miranda to recall dire was a type of wolf that used to live in the Americas.

"I...," Principal Miller paused, seeming to struggle with this himself. "Ah, you know, my own daughter attends another school in Silverton, and... excuse me," then Miller's voice cracked, and there came a sniffing sound before he went on, "It scares me to think it could've just as easily happened to her school."

"Okay," Mr. Donald gently prompted Miranda. "I think we can do this."

Miranda looked to the kids who were part of stage crew, and waved for them to draw back the curtains. With the curtains still parting, Miranda walked into view behind Principle Miller, who looked to be on the verge of crying, when he turned to see her.

"It's okay," Miranda whispered, when she went up to Principal Miller and offered him a hug. "It scares all of us, but I'm glad your daughter is safe."

When other kids filed out from behind the side stages Miller asked, "What's this?"

"Would it be okay if we took it from here?" Miranda replied, and stepped up to the mic before getting an answer.

"Principal Miller," Mr. Donald said, as he too stepped out with other teachers behind most of the students.

"Hey," Miranda said into the mic, and looked at the audience and took another deep breath before going on, "I'm sure most of you know me," and then she looked up to the side feeling her eyes moisten and quickly wiped at her cheek. "Only considered the most popular girl at school. I don't want to say how hard it is to have that hanging over my head. I'm sure there are kids here going through a lot worse than being liked by just about everybody, or at least envied.

"Anyway," Miranda force herself to survey the whole school, as other supernatural kids and adults gathered around for her big announcement. "I think because of that, I was scared what people would think if they knew everything about me. Knew I didn't feel normal... wasn't normal. Mark here, was a new kid, and still working to fit in. I shouldn't feel this way, but it made me think he had nothing to lose if his secret came out. God! That sounds so shallow!"

Miranda felt Mark's hand on her shoulder, as he said, "It's okay."

"Ahh," Miranda grew a little angry with herself, but stayed composed. "'Guess I should just do it."

Bringing her hands up, Miranda waved them before her face, the speed of motion picking up during the dispelling gesture. The entire audience was a wave of gasps and intakes of breaths.

Miranda set one hoofed foot forward to be sure the whole image sank in, and then spoke again, "Yeah, I'm not human anymore either. Mark tells me he's been a werewolf since he was a little kid, just that he didn't know it. He only learned to change a little before his family moved to Norwood. But--."

Miranda felt her wall against the tears crumbling, until Mr. Donald stepped through the stage group up to her other side. Using his own gesture, Mr. Donald also revealed himself in full, and leaned closer to the mic. "Yeah, me too. And a lot more of us than you see up here."

Lila stepped forward and removed her illusion as well, then other Fae students followed, which gave everyone a sense of diversity within the Fae. As if that weren't enough, a few other kids who remained deliberately near the back despite not being so tall, came forth to show off their wings. They were kids who had been pulled from school by their parents, and everyone just assumed they were really sick. The light-bending quality of their feathers required that they flutter or flap their wings to get the point across.

"This is us," Miranda just up and said it. "We're your classmates, your friends, your neighbors. Most of us started changing over the last year, and a few of us sometime the year before. We all can't hide it the way Mark and other werewolves do. Some of us can fake it with illusion, but others of us don't get that break."

Gillian emphasized the point, by coming to stand behind Miranda and also giving a reassuring and light grip of her shoulders. "You got this, girl."

"This is what those people at the park and last week at school were angry about," Miranda continued, now feeling more in control of herself with so much support around her. "Maybe they felt threatened, because they think we're dangerous. I'm sure others are just upset that being human isn't the only special thing in the world. The police say that some are religiously motivated, which doesn't make sense to me. If your religion teaches miracles, can't this be one of them? I don't see why we can't call this God's will.

"For a lot longer than a year or two, we've gotten to accept people with different sexual orientation, even gender identity. Mr. Donald taught us that the fight for racial justice wasn't always peaceful, and that LBGTQI people had to stand and die before their rights were recognized, and their place in society accepted. I didn't think I'd have to do that too. Yeah, I'm Hispanic, and even as a Fae, I'll always think of myself as Japanese and Hispanic. Just... we don't have to hate each other for our differences. We can enjoy our diversity. I mean, c'mon!"

Mark stepped up with a big grin and pointed out to the audience. "Yeah, that means you too, Ron."

Many eyes went to where Mark indicated, and there sat Norwood's all-star baseball player who also bullied kids around the school until that fight with Mark.

"Look," Mark called out again while pulling the mic over. "I ain't mad at'cha, bro. Howlers for life. Come on up here, man. That's it!"

Ron stood reluctantly, and started toward the stage before pausing and looking back. A lot of whispering and pointing ensued, since Ron's hair growth pattern matched Mark's and other werewolves on the stage.

Climbing up onto the stage, Ron was greeted with a friendly fist bump from Mark, and then Ron picked a spot to stand while remarking, "Does this mean we gotta change? I still haven't figured that out."

That got a laugh from the front row students who heard it, and with the microphone back, Miranda leaned forward to answer, "No, it's not necessary. Besides, we don't need you and Mark going at it again."

More of the audience laughed, making Miranda feel more confident again, as she smiled at everyone. "For those of you who also are changing, and don't want to come up here, it's okay. Believe me, I get it. Just know that if you need to talk about it, we're all here for you. I think that's all I can say."

"You did great," Mr. Donald whispered, and then took over.

Mr. Donald pulled out a piece of paper and began reading from it one of Dr. Martin Luther King's shorter speeches, and then followed up with something by Malcolm X. After, the audience applause turned into a standing ovation, and even Principal Miller was clapping enthusiastically from the side.


End file.
